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On Apple Arcades dubious Games quality (#apple #appstore #applearcades)
Consider the following App Store screenshot of a recently introduced game in the Apple Arcades service.
Reviews of this game are really bad because the game doesnāt load on peopleās devices. Does Apple really test their stuff before putting them out? Tim Cook et al. brags all the time about being a mandatory gatekeeper for iPhone security and quality control with the App Store. In this illustrative case, and there are many others, Apple is failing big time to play his role. I just canāt understand why this shit is possible.
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About those two icons (#apple #iOS15)
I rarely comment on rumours from highly speculative reports, but this report from MacRumors is different:
āThe Apple Music for Artists app now features a simpler, streamlined icon with a pinkish red music logo rather than the multicolored logo that was used before. The icon also has an embossed look that makes it stand out from other Apple icons.ā
and
āApp Store Connect in October was updated with a refreshed icon that’s similar to the āApple Musicā for Artists icon, which means Apple has now updated two app icons with this new design.ā
The simple fact that two icons got updated with similar look at several months interval could signal a trend leading to the upcoming design update with iOS 15. I much prefer the right version of these icons, particularly the embossed design. This 3D effect adds some depth and dynamism to the design, and yes I like the fine line marking the icon boundaries.
I wouldnāt be surprised if those two icons were part of an A/B testing program, within Apple. Second, what Apple has done with macOS Big Sur was only the beginning destined to encompass all platforms, in some form or another (icon design wise).
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On Tim Cookās interview by Kara Swisher (#apple #timcook #privacy)
There is a lot to like in the recent Tim Cookās interview with Kara Swisher (link to Podcast). Itās a must-listen. Here are a few observations and remarks.
- I love Tim Cookās stance on issues like privacy protection. But at the same time, I have a hard time understanding how Apple can continue to sign a search deal with Google while advocating privacy protection. This is simply unsustainable and hard to defend if you ask me. I knowā¦ $$$. Yetā¦ will they ever try to make their search engine or buy one like DuckDuckGo and kick Google out as the default search engine? That would be such a powerful message to send.
- Today, Apple under Tim Cook, has never been so well positioned to represent the best corporate defender of many of my core values: privacy protection, careful attention to details in design, openness to diversity, environment protection, sustainable development, great user experiences. Apple is not perfect, far from it. Yet, there is nothing like them these days.
- Tim Cook is candidly answering the question of where he sees himself in ten years from now. I wonder what are the plans for his or her successor? Does he and Appleās upper management actively put as much thought into it as Steve Jobs did in his last few years at Apple? I wonder and I hope this is the case.
- This interview maybe seen as a bit self-serving, yet it is what it is. We, Appleās customers like me, pay Apple to make calls on issues like encryption and privacy protection, environmental protection, etc. Thatās the way I see my voting dollars anyway. As soon as I like most of their calls, Iāll be fine and be one of their customer. I dearly hope it stays that way because alternatives are scarce to say the least.
- Is Apple playing the same rules for ALL developers? I doubt it. Is Appleās curation of the App Store perfect? Far from it: 80% of the stuff in there is pure junk.
I think it is important to stay critical about Apple. We must keep them on their toes.
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> numericcitizen [numericcitizen.io](https://numericcitizen.io/)
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My trick to read more (#reading #writing #tips #tricks)
In a word: Pocket. Iāve been rediscovering this application in recent days, and Iām loving it a lot. I no longer read articles within Safari or News Explorer. As soon as I think the article is interesting, I save it to Pocket and continue from there. The reading experience is simple and is frictionless. Being able to tag and highlight each article helps me organize and add value to my readings. Above all, Pocket will become a repository of all my past readings. The recommend feature creates some exposure for the authors. Each of my recommendation is accompanied by some text. I love it.
You can have a look at my Pocket profile here. Enjoy.
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Remembering... (#techmemories)
Today, Iām remembering things like Turbo Pascal, TRS-80, ResEdit, 6502, LDA #$69, Inside Macintosh, Z-80, TI 99-4A, Logo, Commodore 64, Apple //c, ATZ modem command, eWorld, POKE 63280,0, COBOL 85, PDP-11, Choplifter, Broderbund, Multiplan, 4th Dimension, Sprites, Omni Database, Think Thank, Mac Draw, PageMaker.
These are some of the most significant souvenirs of numeric artifacts of my past numeric life. What are yours?
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Itās been a long time... (#apple #iphone12)
Today, I have come to realize that, since its introduction, I didnāt see the iPhone 12 lineup in person. Itās the first time that I didnāt go to an Apple Store to see, manipulate and experience a new Apple product release. How big is the Max? How small is the mini? What about this new edge? The same goes for the Mac Pro.
The pandemic has really put a dent in our lives in some unexpected ways, big and small. But, do I really miss something? After all, the iPhone 12 is the return of the beloved iPhone 5, which I owned. I guess Iāll have to wait for the iPhone 13 or whatever it is called.
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Curiously Entering the World of DJing (#music #dj #mixing #electronicmusic)
Iām no musicien. I know barely nothing about music theory. Yet, I always wanted to do some form of music. Synthesizer would be my instrument if I was to do music. Yet, Iāve been fascinated by music, especially electronic music since I was a teenager. Iām a big listener of techno and house music. Recently, I started to use my iPad while exercising on the treadmill to play video on YouTube of DJ doing mixes. This got me curious about the equipments and software DJs are relying on. I downloaded Algoriddimās Djay app and stared to play with it on my iPad. I was really excited. I started to read more about the world of music mixing. So, I learned about DJ mixer, controllers, DJ software, music sources, digital record pools, file formats, MIDI, etc. Then, yesterday, unexpectedly, while visiting a music instruments store to see these equipments in person, I bought a Pioneer DDJ-400, a pair of small speakers, went home, enabled a trial of Djay Pro AI on my iPad Pro and started to plug all the pieces together. I feel like itās Christmas time. Will see where it goes from here. Expect more details on my endeavour soon.
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So, Pocket + Readwise for one year it will be. Expect a blog post about why I chose Pocket over Instapaper.
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Iām thinking about subscribing to Instapaper and Readwise to help me gather and manage text quotes and other tidbits. The former is a āclassicā while the later seems a work in progress and not exactly easy to grasp for me. Your thoughts?
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šš» The next issue of the Numeric Citizen Introspection newsletter is coming out tomorrow, while waiting for it, why not give a look at the previous issue! Please, don’t miss it! It’s something really different. š
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And so it begins (#apple #wwdc #wwdc21 #wwdc2021)
Apple just kicked off the 2021 season of high expectations, endless wishes lists, criticism, betas, crashes, deception, no-show products, expected hardware refreshes, iPad deceptions, etc. Again, this year, it will be a digital-only version, thanks to the lingering COVID-19 pandemic. Iām happy with that. As I wrote in the past, my hope is that this type of event stays digital. Iāve never been to a real WWDC so I donāt miss anything.
Now, trying to read into WWDCās announcement art: sure, there is this reference to last yearās Craig Federighi with its MacBook Air, but it is also clear to me that Apple is set to announce their AR Glasses. Yep. Remember, you read it here first guys. š
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The race is on. Canāt wait for the moment Notionās APIs go live and Craft be updated to support them so it can suck all my data from Notion. #notionhq #craftdocs
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This is a test with the most recent update to a little-know utility: Linky. I love it. šš»
Substack vs Buttondown ā Whoās Better? ā My Observations - Numeric Citizen Blog numericcitizen.me/2021/03/2…
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What is your Micro.blog wish list? Iām starting mine for a future post, but Iām really curious to see if my wishes are āout of this placeā. Thanks for all the replies!
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Anyone here using a CDN to accelerate their website access around the world?
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My micro.blog instant joy
Friday thinking… I find is so refreshing to be able to have decent conversations on the open web. There is no drama here, everything seems so… simple. It brings back some confidence about humanās capabilities to engage in respectful conversations…. Thatās be because there are lots of nice guys here on Micro.blog… it is lacking elsewhere (no finger pointing here, I wonāt name a platform… but, well, ya know, right?).
Returning to normal programming.
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Preparing my next Friday Notes issue to be published on HEY World, tomorrow.
